Speech-recognition code released to developers

MENLO PARK, Calif.  Nuance Communications is releasing its natural-language speech-recognition source code and some development tools to help developers get speech-recognition applications up and running quickly, according to John Shea, product marketing manager for Nuance.

The company is also making its SpeechCentral.com developer forum available free to developers.

The company's new developers program comes with the full version of Nuance 6.2 and a full set of speech objects and assorted language utilities and documentation. Twelve new speech objects give developers instant access to language-independent recognition of yes/no responses, which can include 50 variations, such as "yep," "OK," "uh-huh" and the like, and other basic terms such as numbers, dates and times.

The free developers forum provides a resource for learning about speech recognition, and includes an "extranet" that provides a customized environment for sharing speech-recognition knowledge, the company said.